Shrine of New Generation Slaves

by

Riverside

"Progressive Metal returns to the experimental hard rock era of the 70s and mixes it up.

When I first heard the single 'Celebrity Touch' I was a bit disappointed. A simple and direct catchy song with a 70s random sound. But when the album finally came out, I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, it had a 70's flavour, but also a fresh sound coming from an S.XXI music album. A good album with hard riffs, catchy melodies, complex structures and very captivating.

The lyrics are great and the concept of the album represents its time very well. The music is surprising, with many nuances. For me, the best song on S.O.N.G.S. is 'Deprived', which has all the proggy components to catch your mind and immerse you in the problems of society. The saxophone part is really fantastic.

Musically the album has two parts, the first rocker part (1-3) and the second proggy part (4-8). Many influences here: Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, Pink Floyd... and Asia. Yes, the 80s supergroup Asia. I think 'We Got Used to Us' is Wetton & Howe's dream song on an Asia album because of its sensibility. I can still hear Howe's riffs in that song.

Definitely one of the albums of 2013. The perfect mix of prog, hard, metal and catchy AOR melodies.

Don't miss the Mediabook edition, with a CD2 bonus containing 2 night sessions. First one is a progressive electronic song similar to Tangerine Dream, where you can hear the different steps Riverside (or its leader Mariusz Duda) can take. The second is more proggy than the first, especially with saxophone parts that are delicious.

(Originally written for Progarchives website, 02-04-2013)